This time in Wayanad, the scale of damage and destruction has been unprecedented. Entire villages have been swept away, bodies have been found as far as 25 km from where they originated, and the death toll has crossed the 350 mark. Such catastrophic landslides are not limited to Kerala. Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka too have been at the receiving end. 

The recent tragedy has given the 13-year-old Gadgil committee its ‘I told you so’ moment. The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP), famously known as the Gadgil committee, had sought  to label the entire Western Ghats as an ecologically sensitive area (ESA), divided into three zones with different levels of restriction. The committee also recommended the establishment of a Western Ghats Ecology Authority, a statutory body under the Environment Protection Act, 1986. 

The WGEEP report was rejected by the state government for being too environment friendly and not in sync with reality. The chilling repercussions of this decision are now being felt by the helpless villagers residing in the landslide and flood-prone areas of the ghats. 

ESA Notification – Long Delayed, Still Awaited 

Post the Gadgil committee, a new committee was established under the chairmanship of K. Kasturirangan. It recommended that 37 per cent of the western ghats be labelled as ESA’s, a sharp decline from Gadgil committee recommendations. Accordingly, the government released a draft notification in 2014 notifying around 55,000 sq km of land under ESA. However, this too was rejected by the state governments who considered the ESA tag detrimental to the ongoing development projects in their area. 

Since 2014, five iterations to the original draft have been released, the latest in July 2022, but all have failed to get the states on board. A new committee was established under the chairmanship of  the former Director General of Forests, Mr Sanjay Kumar. The committee has a tough task ahead, for getting the states to come to a consensus on the ESA issue is akin to finding a needle in a haystack. 

Professor Manoj R. Borkar, former member of the Goa State Wildlife Advisory Board and a founder member of the Goa State Biodiversity board is of the opinion that "Gadgil Report was based on hardcore science, consultations with stakeholders and a note of precaution. As is always the case, science does not accommodate electoral compulsions and populist leanings". 

Borkar, who was an expert member in the committee constituted by the government of Goa to identify the causes of the Sattari Landslide in 2021 firmly believes that "the Western Ghats cannot be protected in a piecemeal basis. The ecological continuum cannot be forsaken for economic gains. This mountain range is a last refuge of rich and rare biota and must be preserved not just for posterity but for our present ecological security".

Unregulated Development In The Western Ghats 

The absence of an official Ecologically Sensitive Area notification in one of the most biodiverse hotspots of the world has led to unabated quarrying and mining altering the very landscape of the lofty hill range. The Justice MB Shah commission, a contemporary of the Gadgil commission was appointed with the mandate of probing illegal mining across the country. It had in its report revealed of a Rs 35,000 crore iron ore mining scam in the Western Ghats of Goa. The report boldly held both state and central government as parties to the scam. 

Exploiting the non-existence of ESA regulations, large tracts of forests have been cleared in the Western Ghats to build luxury resorts and homestays, adventure parks, skywalks, giant swings etc., many of which are operating illegally. This too has added to the woes of the Western Ghats already reeling under the stress of illegal quarrying.  

Professor Borkar feels that "The mountain range has been assaulted mercilessly by the mining sector and hydel dams; its rich and diverse forests denuded and homogenised for agriculture and linear infrastructure. This pristine landscape is being subjected to encroachments and urban engineered assets".  The tourism sector too is eyeing this area and its riches, further posing a threat to the fragile landscape.

Geologically Susceptible

While all the above-mentioned pressures operate on the surface, geologically the Western Ghats are block mountains and the eroded edge of the Deccan plateau. The meteorology of this region is such that the South Western Monsoons spell can saturate the topsoil and reduce the cohesive forces that bind the soil. 

"Along the slopes with steep gradients, the soil saturated with rain water can simply move as large masses of mud and drag more topsoil as it slides. The loss of vegetation cover simply loosens the soil that becomes susceptible to movement. Any development that is a threat to slope stability combined with climate change-driven events of extreme precipitation can trigger landslides", adds Borkar. 

The Solution 

Frequent disasters have led to calls for Improved long-term weather forecasting. And while better forecasting can only be beneficial, the seriousness of the situation demands that the root cause be fixed in the first place. 

Borkar suggests that "the state and Centre must work in tandem to avert such human-catalysed disasters by investing in mitigation measures rather than managing the post-disaster scenario. Mapping Vulnerable Areas of the Western Ghats is critical to averting loss of life and property. Environmental Impact Assessment must be stringent for developmental proposals in the Western Ghats. Ecotourism could be an effective incentive and alternative to destructive  economic activity here".

For the ESA notification to be successful, the Sanjay Kumar committee should be given a new mandate to prioritise the health of the Western Ghats over all else. It should be obligatory for the states to adhere to the committee recommendations and not cry hoarse over planned development projects. 

Alternative Livelihoods 

What about lost livelihoods? There are a plethora of ways in which the locals can sustain their livelihoods and that too in conditions far better than that of mine and tea plantation workers.

For instance, the government can provide skills training and initial investment to the villagers for collective honeybee rearing, mushroom farming, indoor saffron cultivation, etc. Low-cost aquaculture, pearl farming, and seaweed farming in small ponds can also be promoted.  

A cooperative should be formed to help the villagers collectively market and sell their produce. The financial investment required to build self-sustaining livelihood options for villagers will be far less than what must be spent in the aftermath of tragedies like in Wayanad. The government should immediately assign a committee to work out alternative livelihood opportunities for villagers and ensure timely and proper implementation. 

It is easy to label landslides and flash floods as nature’s fury but a deeper analysis reveals that man-made activities have led to nature unfurling its wrath. Livelihoods can most certainly be provided without playing with nature, livelihoods that don’t put lives at risk.

(The author is an alumnus in public policy management from IIM Kozhikode. She specialises in environmental policy. Views expressed are personal.)

Here are links to : part 1  (Climate Change Crisis: Delhi Joins Long List Of Indian Cities Reeling From A Spate Of Unusual Floods) and part 2  (Climate Change & Disasters Elsewhere Bring Ecologically Sensitive Chardham Into Focus Once Again) of the series.